Almost a year after the completion of the works to improve the state of the emblematic Puerta de Alcalá, it is time to remodel another monument created during the reign of Carlos III: there will be works in the Fountain of Neptune, a work that was erected in the capital as a symbol of Spain’s naval supremacy in the eighteenth century and that today suffers damage that could affect its structure.
Marta Rivera de la Cruz, delegate of Culture, Tourism and Sports of the City Council of Madrid, assured yesterday to the media that the restoration will begin immediately “to avoid greater evils”.
De la Cruz also affirmed that the work will not take more than 14 weeks: “It is an initiative of foresight to avoid having to do a much larger, more complicated and more expensive work in five or six years”.
The location of the Neptune Fountain is one of the factors influencing the deterioration of its monumental part. The high pollution generated by the constant traffic in the area and environmental agents – such as rain or winter frosts – directly affect the material with which it is built. The mortars used to join its pieces are cracked, and many areas present stains and salts that could cause water to enter the interior of the stone.
And a cleaning
In addition, the General Directorate of Cultural Heritage assures that the entire monument presents dirt, to the point that black crusts have formed in the most protected parts of the fountain. For this reason, the fountain will undergo a cleaning treatment before work begins.